also an expert politician who knew exactly how to get things done, exactly in a partisan political environment. sound familiar? what lessons want we learn from him? joining us now, author of a new fantastic book called "thomas jefferson, the art of power." john meachem joins us live. >> you talk about how thomas jefferson, as he gets up first thing in the morning, as many people are now, he had a ritual he would plunge his feet into a base son of cold quarter. >> it is. there's a groove on the floor where the bowl was brought in. but he lived to be 84 so it's a pretty good policy. >> maybe i need a bucket. thomas jefferson was a guy who loved politics. he loved to design stuff, he was a big thinker, he kept great details but at the end of the day he was a guy who could bring two sides together. north, south, come on, let's wind up in the middle. >> he had endless appetite for art, for wine, for women, for architectural books and also power. he was born to it in virginia. the eldest son in an important family. i learned from a very early age. he was was a political apprentice. for 40 years he w